


let's struggle!

by NozomiPower



Series: up in our bedroom after the war [1]
Category: Kingdom Hearts (Video Games)
Genre: Bittersweet Ending, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, but the roles are minor so i'm not tagging, hi i wrote this haha, no beta we die like men, plenty of people mentioned, sorry - Freeform, struggle match haha, written for the hell month writing challenge, yeah it's not that long
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-03
Updated: 2020-10-03
Packaged: 2021-03-07 23:08:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,134
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26785675
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NozomiPower/pseuds/NozomiPower
Summary: the war just ended, and now roxas has to be emotionally vulnerable. fun times all around!orwar's over and now roxas has to face the music that is his friends and also not die while he does so.
Relationships: Hayner/Olette/Pence (Kingdom Hearts), Hayner/Olette/Pence/Roxas (Kingdom Hearts), Hayner/Roxas (Kingdom Hearts)
Series: up in our bedroom after the war [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1953157
Kudos: 13





	let's struggle!

**Author's Note:**

> heyyyyyy it's meeee!
> 
> hi, so i like kingdom hearts a whole lot. i also love roxas. i also love the twilight quartet as a ship. thus, this fic came to be. it took me about a month to write, and i don't know how good it actually is. but i hope you, the reader, enjoy! if you find a mistake i am So Sorry
> 
> also, go drink water and maybe eat a snack if ur hungry!

the first thing roxas did upon arriving in twilight town was shed his  _ awful _ coat.

he hated having to use the organization coats but, alas, he wasn't darkness proof, not at all.

the black clothes he wore underneath were no better, but he had just come from the battlefield, just watched sora leave, and say he would be back in a bit. sora said to give him a few hours at worst, and then he was off.

that gave everyone the time to go and get their bearings, get some fresh air, go visit their homes. when sora came back, he would return to the destiny islands, and then everyone could gather up together, including the twilight trio and namine.

roxas was tasked with getting the trio, and that meant he had to face them for the first time since leaving the digital town. it would be hard, sure, but he could do it. he had just come back from being just a heart, fighting saix, who was apparently isa again, and fighting for his life against weird armored beings in some weird  _ outer space but not quite  _ land.

in short, this quick trip should be the  _ least _ of his worries. but, alas, roxas had ever so slightly fucked up priorities. in truth, the thought of facing the kids who used to be his best friends in a simulation  _ outside _ of said simulation with no way of knowing if they really remember him was very scary. terrifying really.

but with a deep breath, roxas was off. if there was one thing he was an expert at, it was ignoring his emotions in favor of getting a task done.

* * *

roxas entered the station heights, and his breath froze in his throat as a memory played in his mind.

_ "nice work, everyone. added to what we started with, we now have…" olette trailed off, looking around for dramatic effect. she pulled her orange pouch from behind her back in one swift motion, a bright grin on her face. "tada! 5000 munny!" _

_ roxas heard pence let out a joyous 'sweet!' while hayner let out his new phrase 'hell yeah!' and he chose to just grin as olette handed him the pouch. her smile was as sweet as, i don't know, honey? maybe sweeter, but roxas couldn't dwell on that, not when she brushed her hair behind her ear and swayed to the left, then to the right, a gentle rhythm. _

_ "let's get tickets!" _

_ she and pence took the initiative to race forward, laughing. roxas went to follow, but hayner's quiet words stopped him. _

_ "we can't be together forever." roxas looked over, curious. hayner was rarely this type of serious. "so we'd better make the time we  _ do _ have something to remember." _

_ roxas could only let out a tactless 'huh?' at hayner, who responded by shaking off the serious air and punching roxas in the stomach while yelling 'gotcha!' before running away. _

_ rude. _

roxas shook himself out of the memory before it soured. he remembered exactly what happened after, and he didn't want to think about that. twilight town was happiness, peace.

it did not deserve his feelings of anger.

his gaze drifted to where a familiar skateboard sat. same design, same shape. only the colors were different, with the board having been inverted. nevertheless, it was still a skateboard. roxas grinned, only slightly manic. he surged forward, spurred on by memories and feelings that he could only describe as  _ pure freedom. _ it was really hitting him that, oh my god, he's  _ free. _ he's roxas. not sora, not a nobody, not just a heart living inside another boy. he wasn't anyone's other half.

he was complete.

he hopped onto the skateboard and pushed off, his heels making him shaky for a moment before it was complete muscle memory. he started by just skating around the station before he moved on to his more advanced skills. a 360 there, a heelflip here, grind on the rails and do a handstand, do a jump into a method grab before heading back to the rails and grinding off into a sick air walk.

once he landed, he was grinning his first real grin in hours. he felt at ease. like nothing could stop him. he knew his adventure wasn't over, of course. there was something brewing, a storm churning right below the surface of time, ready to burst forth and toss him back into chaos.

but for just one moment, he was sixteen years old, waiting for his friends to come to the station after school so they could visit their friends at the beach together.

for just that moment, he was home.

and then, a thought.

_ right. gotta find everyone! _

roxas almost pulled to a stop, but decided to keep going anyways. skateboarding was faster than walking could ever be, especially in these god awful heels. venitas or whatever his name was could shove it. heels were  _ not _ his vibe.

(quite awkward to have to come face to face with your doppleganger in the middle of a war, but not getting any  _ answers?!  _ ugh, just the pits.)

roxas pushed off, soaring into the tram commons. he expected to see people milling about, shops open and maybe hear some street musicians. that was how twilight town was at this time. quiet, but still alive. it was the twilight of twilight town. but, for some odd reason, everyone was just gone. all of the shops were closed too.

"where is everybody?" roxas slowed down, rolling casually through the commons. people were clearly still living here, as there were still lights and smoke in chimneys and he could faintly hear elina yelling for her bird, bibble. so, clearly, something important was happening.

important?

roxas lit up like the sky when kingdom hearts was summoned just hours ago. the only thing important enough to get elina yelling for bibble  _ and _ get everyone out of the commons was-

"ladies and gentlemen, struggle fiends of twilight town!"

roxas took off, using a blast of aero to get him to the sandlot faster. he burst through the gate, drawing no attention. nothing could take a twilight town citizen from a struggle match. maybe a natural disaster or something like that, but not much else.

"it's time for summer's most sizzling clash!"

_ summer. it's summer. maybe i can experience that fun vacation now. _

"that's right! today is the day for the struggle and title match!" the announcer was energetic, getting the crowd pumped up for the struggle of a lifetime. okay, maybe not a  _ lifetime. _

"who will be the one to break through the ranks and take on our champion, seifer?!"

"so seifer is the champ here...what i wouldn't give to knock him down a peg."

_ "go, aya!" "c'mon aya, show em who's boss!" "kick seifer's ass!" _

aya was a new name. roxas could see a girl with uneven cut bangs and blue hair shaking her head, her lack of confidence obvious. of course, she made it to the finals, so she can't be all that bad.

_ but where are hayner, pence and olette? _

"and  _ who _ will leave today as our new struggle champion?!"

_ "olette for the win!" "olette's got it in the bag!" _

roxas whipped his head around to the left, spotting hayner and pence cheering on the side.

hayner.

on the sidelines.

"wait a fucking second. did they say  _ olette?! _ "

"yes, the crowd is fired up, so you know what comes next.  _ let's…" _

roxas couldn't help but yell out with the crowd, a brilliant smile on his face despite his confusion.

"STRUGGLE!"

fireworks went off, or at least some sort of struggle imitation. the previous announcer switched out for the next, and roxas completely forgot why he was so confused. struggle was just so absorbing that he couldn't help but give it his complete and total focus. he hadn't been able to participate in a struggle since that day in the simulation, and watching sora play struggle just wasn't the same.

"hey now, it's time to introduce today's combatants!" cheers rang through the sandlot, and roxas could almost feel his face cracking from how wide his smile was. "the four bad to the bone kids who struggled their way through the preliminaries!"

the announcer gestured to a small group around setzer, who looked more relaxed that roxas could ever remember. he had his hair in a ponytail and seemed to be genuinely smiling.

"previous champion and a complete and total lady killer: setzer!" lots of cheers for setzer, mostly from the ladies of twilight town, though roxas does let out a few sportsmanship cheers.

"being new to town and even newer to struggle didn't stop this girl from powering through! our newest rookie: aya!"

aya waved her hand as people looked over to her, cheering her on. the crowd was so inviting, but roxas couldn't shake the feeling that he'd met aya before.

"here he is again, ready for more: vivi! he's at his second trip to the finals, so give him a hand, folks!" roxas loved the enthusiasm from everyone. he truly felt like he belonged here.

"and struggler number four, a face we haven't seen in the ring in years: olette!" roxas was pretty sure he outcheered everyone. except for  _ maybe _ pence. pence always cheered loudest for olette.

"so, who will win this sweltering summer struggle?! who will take home the grand prize?!" the announcer turned to the trophy, gesturing wildly. roxas felt a cool breeze inside of him.

_ it's that same trophy… _

"the summa cum laude of struggle, the four crystal trophy!" a beautiful trophy, really. the crystals were most gorgeous when held up to the sun. " _ and, _ a chance to take on our defending champion, seifer!"

seifer held up the belt in one hand, standing next to the announcer. he had a cocky grin on his face. clearly, he was sure that he would remain the champion after today, but roxas had complete faith in him losing.

"it won't be long now folks! i suggest our challengers go over the official struggle rules before we begin!"

and then the haze cleared, and roxas remembered why he was here.

out of the corner of his eye, he could see hayner and pence talking to each other, walking over to talk to olette and probably give her some encouragement. roxas wanted so badly to join them, to stand next to them and chat like nothing was wrong, like he really did fit into their little trio.

_ you're just the messenger for sora. don't interrupt them right now. _

so, he waited. soon enough, the struggle match would start, and he could cheer for olette without drawing attention to himself. until then, he would wait for the match to start, with the first fight being between olette and aya.

"our first match of today's struggle tournament will be between olette and dance prodigy, aya!"

olette held her struggle bat in a position between aqua and riku's stances, while aya held one bat in each hand, like batons.

_ oh! that's-! _

aya settled into a low stance, bats twirling gently. olette responded by solidifying her stance, eyes ablaze.

"ready?!" a pause for dramatic effect, and roxas could see aya revert back into  _ yaxa _ , backup member for organization xiii, the brute force tiger. she used light magic and fought with two maces that she twirled like batons. she had been recompleted, killed by axel a long time ago. and here she was.

fighting olette.

if roxas let panic enter his body, so what? you would be scared too if your best friend was suddenly face to face with a back burner member of the organization who had been recompleted. and just because this particular member wasn't a top tier member, doesn't mean she wasn't  _ strong. _ she had beaten roxas plenty of times, even after he absorbed xion.

ew.

roxas was suddenly reminded of the fact that he was a child soldier, battle hardened to the point where he could analyze stances and become a warrior in a heartbeat. quite frankly, he hated it.

"and...struggle!"

roxas was pulled from his self loathing thoughts and drawn to the ring. aya was the same fighter as always, bending out of moves and using her dual wielding to her advantage. she was in the lead by fifty points, and roxas was scared that olette couldn't make a comeback.

but, oh. how could he underestimate olette like that?

aya had olette caught in a block with one hand, and was pulling back for a blow with another. it had power behind it, intending to knock out a large amount of orbs at once. but olette, clever one that she is, lifted her left leg and hooked it around aya's waist from the left. she set all her weight on her right foot before winding to the left and then releasing to the right, spinning herself and aya twice before olette extended her leg, catching aya in the side, knocking her away while simultaneously knocking out fifty orbs, placing them back at a stalemate. of course, olette couldn't let them stay there forever. she raced forward and body slammed aya, knocking her to the ground. she rolled off, collecting the thirty orbs she knocked out while aya was still hazy, and then bolted out of the way of a struggle bat from aya's left hand. she had raced all the way to the other side of the rink, repeating this lure and run tactic until the announcer started counting down, and then the match was over.

"and the winner is...olette!"

roxas knew his voice wouldn't work even if he wanted it to, because,  _ wow, _ olette looked pretty. the dust was settling around her and the sun shined down on her face. her green eyes were like emeralds, sparkling and shining brighter than anything roxas had ever seen. and he had been to agrabah and the cave of wonders.

"alright, next match up is setzer and vivi! who's ready to struggle?!"

roxas zoned out. it wasn't that he didn't  _ care _ about this fight, it's just that…

he didn't care because it wasn't olette or any of his other friends.

"and the winner is...setzer! we'll give the contestants some time to get ready, and then we'll see setzer and olette, a struggle to the finish!"

was that last match over already? roxas hadn't seen it, but he saw the end score on the board before it got wiped off.

_ 101 - 99 _

setzer only won by  _ one point?! _

"okay…" roxas looked over at setzer and vivi, who were congratulating each other. both looked pretty roughed up, clearly showing that it wasn't just a cake walk for setzer. "i guess vivi is tough now? hm."

roxas was pulled from his thought  _ (when will that stop happening?!) _ by a hand on his shoulder, causing him to jump and whirl around in a slight defensive position. he was met with the grinning face of aya, who held a small tart out to him. it was wrapped in a pretty little package, yellows and pinks and greens, all with lace and ribbons. on the top, written in swirling letters was  _ le grand bistrot. _

"here. i thought you might like it."

roxas looked back up, meeting aya's eyes. she seemed genuine, and roxas  _ was _ kinda hungry…

before his better judgement could kick in, he swiftly unwrapped the package and took a bite. the tart was like heaven, the perfect blend of sweet and tart.

"holy shit, this thing is delicious!" he kept taking bites until it was all gone, and a happy spot existed in his stomach. he was pulled from his food induced bliss by aya's giggling. he looked at her, expression apparently so funny that it only made her laugh harder.

"w-what's so funny? do i have crumbs on my face?!" he began to wipe furiously around his mouth, finding that he did, in fact, have crumbs on his face.

embarrassment filled his body, face flushing.

"you can stop laughing now…"

aya waved off his words, laughter dying down.

"sorry, it's just...you really seem so free now?" aya smiles, and roxas smiles back. "i'm glad we're our own people again. we can be kids, ya'know?"

"yeah, i get it." roxas turns back to the ring and aya does the same. olette is standing before setzer, hand stretched out to his form, which is sprawled on the ground. he takes it with a smile, laughing with her.

_ 189 - 11 _

roxas whistles lowly, eyes widening just a bit.

"she's better than before. i mean, from the digital twilight town, at least."

"she really is! technically, i could have beat everyone else, not to sound cocky, but you know it's true." aya brushes her bangs back, and roxas gets a glimpse of her xemnas given scar, in the shape of an x, burned into her temple like a brand.

"his elite guard, eh? i always forget that division existed. not because you guys  _ sucked _ or anything, but you were a secret group that we didn't know the members of."

aya put her hair back, smiling. "it's easy to forget, yeah. i'm not mad. i'd love to forget too, honestly." she trailed off, smile falling to something more soft, a blank page with emotion hidden just beneath. "i lost to the others on purpose during the semis."

roxas whipped around, mouth agape.

"you  _ what?! _ "

aya met his eyes in a small glare. "you really think those bozos actually beat me? i lost on purpose,  _ just _ so i could fight olette."

roxas could only gape at her, which prompted aya to continue, but not before rolling her eyes and scoffing at him. right, friends with larxene and marluxia.

"i heard you talk about olette, then i came here after i was recompleted. i met her and your other friends, then i decided that i wanted to fight her."

roxas tried to sputter out a sentence, but he couldn't seem to find the words. aya stopped him by placing her hand over his mouth and turning his head back to the rink, where olette stood before seifer, struggle bat in hand. they shook hands, promising a fair fight, and moved to opposite sides.

"i wanted to experience a fight with someone who put true passion into every battle."

"STRUGGLE!"

and olette was off immediately.

in her previous matches, she had been graceful and calculating, but here, she was brute force through and through. she shot forward, breaking through guards, ducking under parry strikes, and dodging back from clean hits. she struck seifer again and again, almost like sora's trinity limit ability. she was a blur of power, and roxas thought she was amazing. the match hadn't even been going for thirty seconds yet, and suddenly, seifer was on the ground in a daze, and olette ran and collected all 100 of his orbs from the ground.

the entire sandlot was quiet for a moment before erupting in cheers.

roxas was definitely one of the loudest, but pence definitely took the cake. soon, a chant of olette's name started, and hayner and pence climbed onto the stage to hug her. they each delivered a big hug, and each of them kissed her on the cheek, sandwiching her.

roxas ignored the cold that washed over him in favor of continuing to cheer for olette. he watched her receive the champion belt and struggle trophy, bathed in the warm glow of twilight.

everyone began to clear out, returning to their day to day lives. his friends headed out to the back alley, presumably to pick up something before inevitably going to the clock tower.

"see you around, roxas! don't be a stranger." roxas waved back to aya as she returned to her friends, who he now recognized as other members of the elite guard. he was glad they found each other, people who really understood her, the way he couldn't.

but you know what roxas  _ could _ understand?

he could understand the feeling of ice running up his spine at the thought of seeing his friends. he could understand the contradicting fire rising to his face from his chest, his blood beginning to simmer. oh, he may not have had a heart long, but he understood this.

he was  _ afraid. _

* * *

roxas finally, after what felt like seven hours, but was really only two minutes, followed his friends out to the abandoned mansion. he was unsure as to why exactly they would be heading there, but it didn't matter to him where they were. so long as he got to talk to them, all was fine.

"okay! to the sewers!" pence raced ahead, hayner and olette quickly following after him.

"why the sewers?" roxas could only ask that question before three screams ripped through the air, pained and afraid.

roxas darted off, weaving through remaining trees, around the building, and down to the sewers that sora had extensively explored. he jolted to a stop at the sight in front of him.

pence and olette both caught in the tangles of several dusks, surrounded by creepers and dancers. hayner was holding his side, but roxas could see the blood dripping to the ground.

that's not good.

roxas felt anger like no other for his friends, for the pain they were facing. he needed to do something immediately.

summoning his keyblades, roxas pulled himself back and down. he watched and waited, and as soon as a dancer made to strike hayner, roxas shot up, connecting with the wall. a pink aura surrounded his body, and he held his keyblades over his head as he jumped into the air. he drove down, delivering a shock dive to the nobodies. it didn't quite kill them, but they did get blasted away from hayner.

"wha-roxas?!" hayner, despite the obvious pain he was in, was grinning ear to ear. roxas couldn't look at him for too long, because he was  _ pretty sure _ he would try and kiss him, so instead, he darted forward and quickly dispatched the dancers before summoning two samurai to his sides and taking out the dusks that were surrounding his friends, leaving the samurai to the ones holding them. he wasn't quite sure that he could efficiently stop the dusks without hurting his friends, what with all the rage in his body.

soon, almost too soon in fact, all of the nobodies were gone, and the sewers were filled with the sound of roxas' panting. he dismissed his samurai with the hissing language of the nobodies and stood, keyblades in hand. he knew his friends were still behind him, their hearts a presence he can't ignore. but he was pulled from his stupor when he heard a body hit the ground and pence and olette call out for hayner. roxas whipped around to see olette pushing hayner's shirt up, and a gasp left everyone's bodies. the sewers were suddenly so much colder with the sight of hayner on the ground, a gaping hole in his side. there were scratches along his torso as well, and hayner himself was looking less and less like he would live by the second.

roxas could only stumble closer to them, sinking to his knees once he was by hayner's side.

hayner's eyes opened slowly at the feeling of a new hand on his head, a shaky smile coming to his face once he saw just who it was. "rox…"

that caused pence and olette to burst into tears, and hayner laughed for a moment before it devolved into hacking, and roxas could just barely see his organs, which was his cue to  _ fucking think _ .

"oh my god, ha-hayner!" olette stumbled to her feet, making it two steps before she fell over, her shaking stopping her from moving anymore. "gotta...doctor...hospital…" she tried to turn on her phone, but there was no service down in the sewers for her, and her phone just  _ wouldn't make the call. _

"we're not gonna make it…" pence's hands found his hair, and he curled in on himself. "hospital is too far and if we try and move him, we might fuck something up." he buried his face in his knees, sobs beginning to echo through the air.

"but then, hayner will…" olette couldn't finish her sentence.

hayner frowned, his eyes drifting from pence to olette. he didn't want to die, and he  _ certainly _ didn't want the loves of his life to see it happen. the view of his innards was already too much. him dying would just be the cherry on this shit sundae.

"guys, just leave me here." hayner ignored the gasps and protests. "i don't want you to see me die."

" _ hayner! _ " olette's shriek was furious and anguished at the same time, frustrated that, even in his dying moments, hayner was so worried about his friends that he forgot to worry about himself. "yeah, dude, we're not leaving you here alone." pence sounded as angry as olette did, and hayner sagged.

"i can…" roxas felt the eyes snap to him. "i can heal him."

roxas stood, ignoring the questions from olette and pence that turned to shouts when he placed the tips of his keyblades at hayner's stomach. he closed his eyes, focusing on the pit of energy that was his magic. it was all there, and he made sure to tap into the light reserves too. this spell required  _ all _ of his magic and energy. his arms began to glow green, the light slowly travelling to the rest of his body before gathering at the tips of his blades. one last prayer to kingdom hearts and the lights above, and he released the spell.

_ "curaza." _

a flower bloomed above his head, and light filled the sewers, probably even spilling to the outside. roxas could feel his body begin to sway, but he forced himself steady until all of his magic was completely gone, and his energy was sapped away. he didn't stop until he heard olette cry out in relief, followed by pence placing his hands on hayner's torso, a happy 'oh my god!' coming from his mouth.

roxas removed his keyblades from where they had still rested on hayner, and he was suddenly reminded of why he was told to  _ not _ use curaza. he could hear aqua and terra now, telling him why it was a bad idea, right after seeing aqua use it on the slightly separated-from-his-body arm of ventus. she had fallen over right after, but not before using cure on terra as well, casting her out of the fight for twenty minutes. apparently, that was a good time.

_ "i've been honing this spell for fifteen years. i'm lucky to only be out this long. if you use it, gosh, i'm not sure what will happen to you." _

she had still taught it to him which, in hindsight, was a bad idea, because roxas was confused as to why his friends were turning, the whole world going topsy turvy. it almost felt like when sora would drop during his mark of mastery, that feeling of  _ lights out _ washing over his body. he didn't even realize his keyblades had gone away or that his friends lunged to catch him. all he could focus on was a warm and cozy feeling.

and the last thing he felt was hayner's familiar rings running over his face, gentle as ever.

* * *

the tower chimed, once, twice, one last time, and then it was quiet.

the hand in his hair stilled as roxas' eyes fluttered open, and he was met with the gaze of olette, which went from hopeful to  _ ecstatic _ . her head snapped up, and she yelled for hayner and pence, but roxas could only focus on her hand, still in his hair, having stopped mid stroke.

"keep going."

olette's green eyes met his blue ones (not like the sky, that was reserved for sora) and she looked confused for a moment before her eyes darted to her hand and she let out a small  _ oh. _ her hand resumed whatever it had been doing, and-

roxas melted.

olette was like some sort of head pat  _ god _ or something, because roxas hadn't felt this relaxed since, well, ever. of course he would turn into putty at the hands of olette, who could  _ always _ make him melt with just her smile. and when she added in her nails, gently scratching at his scalp and making all the war tension melt away? a noise built up in his chest and all he could do was let it out, as he truly felt like he had no thoughts other than  _ peace _ , his head empty.

"olette! what…"

hayner and pence stood in the doorway to their hangout, staring at roxas with wide eyes. roxas didn't notice, his eyes closed in content and a smile on his face for the first time in what felt like forever.

"dude!" pence pushed hayner aside, bounding toward the couch roxas and olette were on. he sat by the floor, grabbing roxas' hand and beginning to mess with his fingers in that clockwork way pence had always done. when the noise roxas was making intensified, hayner came over and sat down as well, running his hand over roxas' stomach, his rings oh so familiar to roxas' muscles.

"oh my god. rox, are you  _ purring?! _ " hayner was way too excited about this. he lit up before he sprang on roxas, laying on top of him, taking in the rumbling and pushing his face into the side of roxas's neck. his laughter rushed over roxas like a way, a sound he hadn't heard in so long, finally ringing in his ears again.

"roxy?!"

_ oh, she remembers my nickname. _

"woah, roxanne! what's wrong?!"

_ there goes pence with that endearingly ridiculous nickname. _

"rox, if you don't respond soon, olette's gonna start crying too!"

_ they really remember me…wait, what does he mean "too?" _

roxas raised his hands to his face, only to find that they came away wet with salty tears. he could only stare as his hands got blurry. he wiped at his eyes, but the tears wouldn't stop. it was strange, really. he had a heart (his heart, nobody else's.) and yet he couldn't figure out this feeling. it felt warm, sweet. he felt like he was being wrapped up in someone's arms.

_ "when i finally got to say good morning to terra and aqua, i felt like i was lighter, like i could do anything. i felt relief." _

was that it? ...no, there was something else there too.

_ "when i got my body back and i could talk to my friends again, i truly felt like i was free. freedom is something we take for granted. but that feeling of 'oh, i can run and walk and dance and love again.' that, that is my freedom." _

maybe he felt free, too. he did, he knows that. but there was another feeling in there, one he didn't know the name for.

_ "i was stuck in the realm of darkness for just over a decade, ya'know. it wasn't easy, not in the slightest. i missed my friends, i missed master eraqus, i missed being with people i could love and trust. of course, i had mickey, but i didn't have the people closest to my heart. did you know that all living creatures absorb bits and pieces of those around us? their influence on us can seem small or nonexistent at times, but it's there. in the realm of darkness, i was missing the pieces that matched my own, the ones who made my heart belong to me. i know i don't make much sense, but when i returned to the realm of light, when i returned to the destiny islands, i could see and feel ven and terra. of course, they weren't really there with me, not physically, but i could still feel their presence. both in that moment and in the moments i got them back, i could only feel a warmth. i felt the sun shining down, even if it hadn't really been there. warm fuzzies, and i really felt like i was  _ home. _ " _

relief at being remembered.

the freedom of being his own person, not some kid's body.

and the feeling of  _ being home _ .

roxas laughed, his eyes closed tight, tears still streaming down his face. he could hear his friends, his  _ home, _ calling in confusion, but he was just so  _ happy. _

"thank you...thank you for remembering me." his laughter died down, and he opened his eyes to see his home (they live in his heart, always) looking at him, each of them smiling.

"aw, roxy!" olette booped his nose, her giggle the single most beautiful noise in the world. "of course we remember you! sora  _ kinda _ told us about you, and then it gradually came back, until we remembered everything."

"yeah! like, hayner remembered how you whooped his butt in struggle! and that time you showed up his gymnastics skills! or, oh, that one time when you outsang him! and-"

"okay, pence, we get it! rox beat me at everything, we all remember that." hayner looked away, face rose red. what a pretty color on him. "he also beat me at being cute, but that's not news to anyone."

"you think i'm  _ cute?! _ " roxas sat up in a second, hayner almost falling off of him, if not for roxas quickly winding his arms around hayner's torso. hayner could only stare wide eyed at roxas, who was pretty much glowing with how happy he was. "you  _ seriously _ think i'm cute?!"

"uh, duh? we were  _ dating _ , roxanne. dating, with a capital going steady. how could we forget our boyfriend?" pence flicked the side of roxas' head, smiling. "our hearts are intertwined. or, that's how sora said it."

roxas couldn't believe his ears. there was no way in  _ hell _ they remembered the dating. all of that stuff, every moment they shared that was romantic in nature, it had all been a ploy, a joke, bait to lure roxas into a trap so that he could wait for his end, like an animal. every memory he had was fake, of his own making.

so how on earth did they remember?

"but...it was all in my head. i-i made it all up. how do you remember it if i made it up?"

" _ ai _ , roxy. hearts work in mysterious ways, that they do. our hearts remember you, and they're telling our brains what happened. and, i mean, if it feels right for us to remember you, doesn't that mean we should?" olette gently turned roxas' head to face her, and their foreheads met in such a familiar way that roxas almost felt like he was still in the digital town. "roxy, we care about you a lot. and," olette looked over to hayner and pence, who nodded back at her. "we would like to date you, if you'd like that too."

roxas couldn't believe his ears.

hayner, pence and olette wanted to  _ date him _ ? no way, he's dreaming. war never happened, he never fused with sora, it was all a fever dream, he's gonna wake up  _ any second now. _

"roxanne?"

hayner's hands linked behind his neck, olette's hand on his jaw, pence's hands resting on his thigh. their eyes, brown and green, stare at his face, holding nothing but patience. patience for a young heart, so unattuned to its own emotions that it falters when faced with them.

"why?" a mutter so quiet, it was barely a word.

"rox?"

his head dipped out of olette's grasp, his eyes squeezing shut. you would think, after no water, in a  _ desert _ , mind you, he would be too dehydrated to cry. but, no. apparently, roxas had excess water that just had to escape his body, and his tears dripped down, his sobs like knives to the chest.

_ why would you want me? i'm just a nobody. i'm not even supposed to exist. i don't have the right. _

"who said that to you?"

hayner's voice was heavy with anger, a tone nobody ever really heard him use. sure, he would get annoyed at seifer, or a little ticked off at people sometimes, but this fury in his voice was new.

"roxas. who the fuck said that to you?"

his head lowered more, but hayner pulled it back up so roxas was forced to look at him. no choice but to snitch, he supposed. "it was diz. and riku, once, but never again." he could only watch as hayner began to scowl, face twisting into something fierce.

"i don't know who the  _ fuck _ diz is, but i'm gonna kick his ass."

roxas hurried to wave his hands to try and clear the air. don't get him wrong, he still couldn't fucking stand diz  _ or _ ansem the wise, but he knew that damaging that man would be detrimental to every plan they could come up with, considering he was the only one who could decipher his research. maybe even could, but it would take ages.

"you can't hurt him! the guardians of light need him and his knowledge to do smart people stuff. i can't be sure if he's changed, but i need to give him another chance, for the sake of the cause."

"pence can take his place or some shit! that asshole said you didn't have the right to exist, which is  _ utter bullshit! _ " hayner was turning red with anger. roxas couldn't help but be flattered and honored that hayner was getting this upset for his sake.

"listen, i'm okay. kind of. now that i'm back with you three, i'm even better than before, promise."

the hangout went silent and roxas' smile began to droop before it turned completely into a frown. did he say something wrong? did he just make it awkward? oh  _ god _ , what if they took back the fact that they liked him?!

"uh." what does he say? what  _ can _ he say? "i-"

unfortunately, or maybe luckily, roxas doesn't get to finish his sentence because pence surges forward and  _ oh my god pence is kissing roxas. _

roxas freezes up in seconds. not because he doesn't wanna kiss pence, quite the opposite, really, but because  _ oh my god pence is wearing cherry limeade lip balm. _

_ his lip balm. oh my god his? he? pretty boy is kissing me???? is this my reward for helping defeat xehanort cause if it is sign me up again and again! am i kissing back? oh light i don't think i am. i can't move. he actually fucking killed me. i am actually dying. killed by a pretty boy. what a way to go. _

before roxas can start working again and  _ kiss back for fuck's sake, _ pence pulls away, smile only kind of tight. roxas can see his lips moving but, oh dear, roxas is so out of it that he can't hear anything. pence actually fucking killed him. he's dead now. that's it, he's returning to kingdom hearts.

before roxas could forcibly pull himself from his kiss induced stupor, another pair of lips meets his, and he doesn't even have to  _ think _ before he realizes it's olette. just like in the simulated town, olette wears strawberry lip gloss over this  _ really _ pretty pink that's blended so perfectly from the inner parts of her lips to the outside. and, oh my  _ lights. _

she's wearing cucumber perfume.

roxas loves when olette wears cucumber perfume, because it always blends with the scent of strawberry and makes him feel like he's on a little farm with fruits and veggies and he's in a cottage and is washing produce that he grew with the three loves of his life and everything is  _ good. _

but then she pulls away, and roxas is left with a feeling of complete  _ awe. _

olette is so good at kissing and her lips are very soft, like little pillows or something. she had a very particular skin and lip care routine and  _ hoo boy. _

it paid off.

roxas could just vaguely hear now, but the words were still slightly fuzzy in his mind. hayner was saying something about roxas and how if this doesn't snap him out of it, they'll smack him or something. roxas isn't quite what  _ this _ is, but whatever it is, it requires hayner to pull roxas towards him and come closer and-

oh.

_ oh. _

hayner is kissing him.

_ hayner. _

see, hayner and roxas rarely kissed. hayner had this teensy weensy bit of touch aversion, and could only stomach hand holding at best. a kiss from hayner was like, always on the cheek or maybe the nose or perhaps even the forehead. he loved forehead kisses. he also loved giving them more than receiving them, and so he rarely ever kissed any of his partners on the lips. maybe an anniversary, or a christmas party, or on new years.

for hayner to just up and kiss roxas on the lips like this, even though roxas was a half stranger?

_ holy shit. _

hayner smelled like oranges. the scent lingered, wafting off of him like an aura of citrus. it was like heaven on  _ earth, _ being surrounded by strawberry, cherry limeade  _ and _ oranges. and when it came with the three people he loved most, it was like kingdom hearts itself had given him a prize because it acknowledged the pain he's gone through.

his lips were soon all alone again, and he could finally understand the three people surrounding him and the words they were saying.

"rox?"

hayner was running his right hand over roxas' arm, olette was messing with his hair and pence was once again messing with the fingers of roxas' left hand, pressing down on them or pushing them up in no particular pattern.

_ they still remember all my grounding exercises. holy shit. _

"roxy? you back with us?" roxas nodded, taking a moment to just breathe and blink. "oh, good job! you're doing so well! once you feel ready, can you tell us what happened in the sewers?" roxas nodded again and took a few minutes to just be. he didn't have to be anyone or anything, but he just had to be. easy enough when you're surrounded by the three people closest to your heart.

"i. i think i'm ready." deep breath in, then let it out. "when i saw hayner on the ground, i felt really scared. i was scared he might die and i might never get to meet him. i also didn't want you two to have to lose him. so, i tried thinking through everything i could. i didn't have any potions or hi-potions, no mega elixirs. cure wouldn't solve the issue, nor would curaga." roxas made sure they were following before he moved on. overwhelming the three people you consider home was bad, he knew that at least.

"right. so, there's this thing called  _ grand magic. _ most grand magic spells are hard enough, but they're pretty on par with curaga for how much energy they take. curaga takes all of your magic reserves, and it leaves you really tired. i don't know how donald does it, honestly. but, uh, curaga wouldn't cut it. for fatal wounds or life altering stuff, that's where the grand healing comes in.  _ curaza. _ it's the only grand magic i know that uses both  _ magic _ reserves and  _ Light _ , with a capital L and everything. not like, the inner light stuff that any and all people can technically harness, but the Light, like in all the worlds. aqua, you probably don't know her, taught me how to use it because, hey, it's a good skill to have. so, uh. she passes out for anywhere from fifteen minutes to an hour when she uses it, so i consider myself lucky to even be alive." roxas shrugged. "so, yeah. i used a really big spell and passed out. no biggie."

_ no biggie. _

"wha-rox! that is totally a  _ biggie! _ "

roxas went to argue for his side, but the air was filled with the slightly annoying ring of his gummiphone. he pulled it out and his face scrunched up when he saw it was riku calling him. even though he didn't hate riku, he didn't quite like him all that much either. maybe it could be mended with time, but  _ now? _

"hold up, gotta answer this." he hit that cute little green button and brought the phone up to his ear. "yeah?"

_ "yeah? _ yeah?! _ everyone's been calling you for the past two days! what happened?!" _

woah.

"uh. i used curaza and i passed out. i guess i was out for two days."

_ "why did you use curaza?!"  _ riku was fucking  _ shrieking. _ ew.

"uh, emergency. hayner got like, impaled."

_ "what do you mean hayner got impaled?! how are you so calm about that?!" _

_ sheesh. _ what has riku this loud?

"he's okay now, so i'm not worried anymore.  _ anyways, _ why did you call?"

_ "oh. right. sora and kairi are back!" _

stop.

count to ten. count back to one.

breathe.

be calm.

"WHAT?!"

that...that isn't calm.

roxas stood up, barely registering his friends moving away from his frantic movements.

"since  _ when?! _ "

_ "yesterday! we've been letting him recover,  _ and _ he refused to celebrate anything without you! so, did you talk to your friends?" _

"uh, yeah! they're here right now. i mean, i don't think i told them about the whole sora thing, but i can bullshit that."

_ "aqua says watch your language. but, yeah. i'll pick you guys up in the gummiship in three hours so you don't have to risk anything with the corridors. is three hours enough time or should i drag it out?" _

"yeah, three hours is good. that's all good. what's the plan for this celebration, exactly?"

_ "we all show up at the islands. we just kinda, ya'know, have fun like normal kids would have. selphie, tidus and wakka gave us some stuff for like, barbeque and whatnot, and the wayfinder trio made stuff at departure, which is where i am now. we're taking it over there, then i'm picking up namine from radiant garden, then you guys! does that all sound good?" _

"do i even have a choice? sounds like it's all finalized."

_ "yeah, sorry. you would've had more input if you had been awake, but it is what it is." _ riku paused, probably listening to all of the wayfinders, if the noise was anything to go by.  _ "aqua says you're reckless, terra says hi, and ven says sorry about having the same face and voice." _

"why the hell is ven apologizing for his face?  _ i _ stole  _ his _ face, not the other way around."

_ "yeah but ven's like, seven months old. mentally. ow! he threw a plastic cup at me just now. he's practically trying to kill me. help me roxas, i can't die yet!" _

this was his best conversation with riku in, well,  _ ever. _

"ah, sorry you're-you're breaking up!" roxas made a  _ kkkkrrrsshh _ noise with his mouth, very loudly. "gotta go! see you in- _ kkkkrrrsshh _ -three hours!" roxas hung up on riku's prolonged  _ 'nooooooooo!' _ and, honestly?

it felt nice talking to him.

"roxanne, what's happening in three hours?"

roxas jumps, having been so wrapped up in his conversation with riku that he completely forgot that his friends (boyfriends and girlfriend? hm.) were in the room. he turned to face them where they sat on the couch like some sort of high council, ready to judge his crimes.

"oh! well, i just got back from a war, right? right! so-"

_ "a war?!" _

"hayner, yes. a war. no biggie, we won. just, let me explain?" roxas waited until hayner sat back down, albeit with his arms crossed and looking like a cute, little petulant child. "so, we were in a war. during this war, kairi sorta died? don't, uh, don't worry! she's okay now! sora went to find the pieces of her heart or something, and now they're back! and, so, we're going to be celebrating their return on the destiny islands!"

hayner, pence and olette all blinked. confusion was practically dripping off of them.

"um. right. worlds. uh, there are multiple worlds, ya'know? the destiny islands are where sora, riku and kairi are from, so we're celebrating there. i'll explain the whole  _ multiple worlds _ thing later, okay? but, hey! we finally get to go to the beach together!"

roxas knew his smile was awkward and that his attempt to be super peppy and cheery was  _ not _ exactly working, especially since olette and pence were looking at him with their pity faces.  _ ouch. _

"wait. did you just say  _ the beach? _ " hayner stood up, and it seemed like olette and pence finally registered roxas' words, because they quickly stood as well, grabbing onto each other's hands.

"roxy,  _ roxy! _ are we seriously going to the beach?!" olette was practically vibrating between hayner and pence, her smile wide even though she was visibly trying to keep it small.

"well, yeah." roxas looked away, scratching the back of his neck. "i may have put in a special request with sora and the others that, once he came back with kairi, we celebrate at the islands. i may have  _ also _ asked if i could bring you three with me when it happened. riku and aqua said sure, and sora said he'd really love to see you guys there." roxas suddenly flushed red and looked down. "i mean! if you guys  _ don't _ wanna go, then i understand! it's chill! i'll just call riku and tell him that there's been a-"

roxas was cut off by a kiss on his cheek, and his head whipped up to find the culprit.

hayner stood beside him, hand on his cheek. he was looking at roxas with a combination of adoration and exasperation, something roxas had missed dearly from him. on his other side was pence, who had his head on roxas' shoulder, gently nuzzling him. olette was at his back, tracing words in an ancient language onto his back, over and over. he didn't know the language, but the motion was so familiar that it brought him comfort nonetheless.

"idiot. of  _ course _ we're coming to the beach with you. we've been wanting to go for a while, and, unless i'm wrong, we all said we would go to the beach together and eat watermelon." hayner squeezes roxas' cheek gently. "or are you saying i'm  _ wrong? _ cause hayner's never wrong, ya hear?"

_ oh, i know this one. this is pure joy and  _ love. __

_ oh, _ roxas thought.  _ i'm in love. _

* * *

roxas sat atop the clock tower, looking out at the sunset. this permanent light was beautiful, bathing the town in gold. each and every corner was drenched in pure sunlight in a way that made roxas want to cry. this town was beautiful, and it was  _ home. _

"roxy, here."

roxas turned to olette, curious, and his breath froze in his throat when he saw the brilliant blue orb being held out to him.

"wha…"

"from the trophy? we may not have physically been there, but we remember you winning the match, ya'know." olette set the orb in roxas' hand and closed it tight, grinning. she turned back to the sunset and her ice cream, smile fading out to a gentle, but not unhappy, expression. "sora gave us a picture. we hadn't realized it, but the one we had was missing something. some _ one. _ when sora showed us, it clicked in our heads that, yep, there's a gap where someone should be. after that, memories came flooding back, and all sora had to do was tell us to believe and listen to our hearts. i thought it would be harder, but soon,  _ roxas _ wasn't a random name that felt familiar. he was our best friend, our  _ boyfriend. _ "

olette blinked at the sky before she giggled, light and airy. a blush came over her face, and she glanced at roxas before glancing down at the ground.

"kairi was actually here at some point, did you know that?" roxas nodded, and olette hummed. "she told us about how she was missing her two best friends, and that she had even forgotten one of them for a whole  _ year. _ i felt pretty similar to her, honestly. the two of us ended up talking alone, and she told me about her letter that she had written to sora."

a pause, a lick, a sigh.

_ "'thinking of you, wherever you are.'  _ it felt too good to be true. seriously, what are the odds that i meet a girl with a similar experience to mine, even if i didn't realize how similar until  _ after _ the fact? i was lucky to meet kairi. she brought a clarity to me that i didn't know i needed. so, when i felt like i wasn't doing enough to remember you, or i felt like it might not even be working and you wouldn't have a good enough anchor, i would say this to myself."

olette hurriedly finished off her ice cream and stood up, drawing hayner and pence's eyes as well. she cleared her throat before beginning.

_ "thinking of you, wherever you are. i pray for your sorrows to end, and i hope that you will forgive this fairweather friend. now, i will step forward and realize this wish with what little power i have. and, maybe, restarting love won't be hard, or maybe it's already started to bloom, or maybe it has never stopped blooming. there are four beings here, but we all share one heart - one heart, one love." _

roxas stared at olette throughout her entire speech. he'd heard kairi's letter to sora, and he'd thought this would just be the same thing. but olette was talking to  _ him _ , not sora. she'd changed it to be for him, to bring  _ him _ back. olette wasn't always good at poetry, not at all, but that was the single most beautiful thing he'd ever heard.

olette sat back down and began to eat her second ice cream with such a passion that you'd expect it to be her last meal. she refused to look up from her lap, and her legs kicked back and forth.

_ holy lights. _

"wow, lette! didn't realize you had that in you!" hayner twirled a strand of olette's hair around his finger. "you made that up for him?"

olette nodded, shy in a way nobody had seen her before.

roxas...he couldn't even speak. olette had made that for  _ him. _ she thought about him so much that she went through all that editing trouble to bring him back. she called herself a fairweather friend, even though roxas didn't agree.

"olette, you…" roxas couldn't figure out what to say, so he simply grabbed olette's free hand in his, smiling. he turned back to the sunset, content to just exist in this moment. riku would be picking them up in about thirty minutes, near the old mansion.

roxas bit down on his ice cream, looking down at his feet. they dangled off the edge, and they were (finally) out of the heels he had been wearing. apparently, hayner and his sisters had worked to make a copy (not a replica not a replica) of his outfit, and they had somehow managed to get it spot on, from just a picture. (okay,  _ maybe _ a few flashbacks, but mostly just a picture.) roxas actually felt like he could exist in his outfit now and even fight, but that wasn't needed. he was here, on the roof, happy.

but, there was something he needed to address.

"hate to kill the mood, but i have a really important question."

all eyes darted to roxas.  _ yeesh. _

"yeah? shoot." hayner nodded.  _ here goes nothing. _

"what...are we?"

_ why would you ask it like that??? _

"uh, i-i mean, like-"

"roxanne, we know what you mean." pence laughed. "we're whatever you want to be. if you wanna take it slow, we can do that. if you wanna all date now, then sure. we're ready when you are, but we'll also wait if you need us to."

_ by kingdom hearts, they are perfect. nobody better. not at all. _

"uh!" voice crack, ew. "i, ah, i would like to date. now." roxas gave a very stilted nod. "yes, please."

they ignored his voice crack, and they all nodded and looked away. no biggie.

"yeah, we can date. now you've got one boyfriend," pence nodded. "one  _ girlfriend _ ," olette did a peace sign to no one in particular. "and one joyfriend. me." hayner pointed to himself, and roxas couldn't help but notice his flush and bit of awkwardness.

"joyfriend? what's that?"

"it's what a few nonbinary people call themselves when they date. instead of boyfriend or girlfriend, i use joyfriend. i use all pronouns, but my favorites are he/him, it pronouns, and crayon pronouns, which i can explain later."

roxas isn't even gonna pretend to understand, but he nods anyways. he knows what pronouns are, yes he does, but it pronouns and crayon pronouns are unfamiliar to him. he'll have hayner explain how to use them later, but for now he just nods along. he knows hayner can tell he's clueless, but he doesn't really care.

"for now, just use what you've been using. we can worry about the others later. don't wanna give you a headache by making you think too hard."

"wha-!" roxas sputters for a moment before he settles on glaring. "hey! i think perfectly fine! i may not know a whole bunch, but i don't need to! olette thinks enough for all of us! her brain works overtime to make up for what i don't have, which is exactly how it should be."

olette turns to glare at roxas this time, but it's playful.

"aren't you supposed to be  _ sixteen? _ that means we have to enroll you in high school." olette turns away, continuing with her eyes closed and ignoring roxas' obvious growing horror. "i'll have to give you some intense tutoring, but i'm sure we can get you all caught up to speed by the time school starts up! i already have a plan! in one week, we'll just learn everything you'll need to know!"

"letty, you can't just fit sixteen years worth of education into a week. that's just silly." roxas sighs, thinking pence is taking his side. "if we tell the teachers he was an orphan or something, then they'll cut him extra slack, and give us another week to get him caught up! then, i'm sure we can do it!"

"hayner," roxas whines. "you gotta stop them! they're trying to kill me! my brain's gonna explode!"

hayner laughs at him, the  _ asshole. _ "no, they're right! you gotta keep up with us! even  _ i'm _ on board with this!"

roxas can only stay mad for a few more seconds before he meets hayner's gaze and bursts into laughter, causing pence and olette to follow close behind. they laugh for a while before it dies off. they don't need to say anything before they all go back to the sunset, closer together than before. they stare at the sun, eating whatever ice cream remained on the sticks. olette's on her third, hayner's on his fifth, and pence is on his second, along with roxas. they sit in silence, and it sure isn't an uncomfortable one. but roxas has to break it, because he knows riku will be there any second, and he  _ needs _ to say this.

"ya'know, the question is supposed to be  _ 'do you know why the sun sets red?' _ but this place is in like, a perpetual state of sunset. it's twilight town, for crying out loud." roxas knows he's yapping for no reason, but this has to be said. he needs to say this before he chickens out. "so, i'll change the question to fit this town a little better."

roxas clears his throat.

"do you know why the sun bleeds red?"

hayner, pence and olette all share a look before turning back to roxas and shaking their heads.

"right. well, it's because all the colors that usually travel through the sky get tired. they get tired and exhausted and give up, until tomorrow."

_ "roxas, don't worry. i'll help you get back your life. just...don't stop fighting. even if everyone else in there seems tired, don't give up." _

"but red keeps going."  _ deep breath in, let it out.  _ "it fights to get to where we can see, and it turns the sun into its beacon. red is a fighter, even when the others quit."

_ "ventus, whoever he really is, is asleep. xion vanished and i forgot her, stupidly. that other girl, whoever she is, she stopped fighting a long time ago. i...i won't give up. not until i can see my friends again." _

"red keeps on fighting through the aches, and that's why the sun bleeds red. i say it bleeds because, really, does it ever stop setting here? blood runs forever, if you can let it. just like red, blood keeps going through people, even when someone hurts. i know it seems morbid, but the sun really does bleed red."

_ "i won't give up. even if i'm a nobody or don't have the right to live, i'll give myself the right. i won't stop going, i won't stop fighting. thank you for helping me, sora, but i'm ready to go." _

the sun doesn't dip from its spot in the sky, and it doesn't lose that red hue. this is a view, a strength, you can't get anywhere else.

"yeah. i got it." hayner turns back, and so do pence and olette. it's not hard to realize just what roxas was really talking about.

"we'd better head down. riku's gonna be here soon." in the sky, there's a line streaking across, like a meteor or shooting star. "there he is."

they all stand up, conversation returning to something light. roxas doesn't talk as he looks down at his ice cream stick.

_ WINNER! _

"a winner, huh?" roxas looks up at the sky, meeting the sun. he looks down at the town, seeing the place in his heart. he looks over at hayner, pence and olette, who are waiting for him by the door, patient as ever.

he looks back down.

"yeah."

* * *

they land on the play island, and roxas is immediately swept in a hug by xion and lea as soon as he steps foot on the beach. there's a few tears, but the hug is relatively short. as soon as they separate, roxas swivels around to grab hayner, who grabs olette, who grabs pence, and roxas pulls them all to meet lea and xion.

it's tense at first, but once lea and xion drop their ridiculous tough kid act, their group falls into the rhythm. they're soon joined by isa (not saix, that's not who he is anymore), who leans on lea's shoulder, grabbing his hand. olette and roxas  _ ooo _ and  _ aaaa _ at that, thoroughly embarrassing the two men.

roxas goes around introducing everyone to his friends, though it's more of a reunion with sora and kairi, and then the festivities can begin.

namine, olette and xion all become fast friends, and they even make friends with selphie, who drops by to leave some gifts in the form of ribbons with symbols and their names, made in partnership with kairi. olette and selphie bond over shopping, and selphie, tidus and wakka take the  _ more worlds than your own _ thing well.  _ really _ well. that's when they come clean about knowing, and they mention being friends with some dude named squall (or is it leon? they call him both) and some girls named yuna, rikku and paine. apparently, they're also from radiant garden, or at least their parents are. it's news to everyone, but they all take it in stride. would they all be the guardians of light if they didn't? no, no they wouldn't.

sora wraps roxas in a gigantic hug once he gets the chance, and he says he's so happy to finally meet roxas under good circumstances. roxas returns the sentiment, and they pretend they're not crying.

riku apologizes to roxas for everything he put him through, but roxas forgives him, just like that. he understands why riku did it, even if it didn't really make him happy. besides, the worlds need sora, desperately. also, ven would have stayed trapped within sora had roxas stayed awake, so he's okay with it now. kinda.

kairi says she's so happy to be able to meet roxas at all, and tells him that his heart is so beautiful. full of love and light, she says. she wraps him in a hug, and whispers a thank you in his ear, for being so kind to namine. he pretends not to cry, but he does. kairi ends the encounter by giving him a music box, which plays what she calls  _ roxas' theme. _ said it was composed by demyx, and says she'll pass on his thanks.

talking to ven is strange at first, but then ven is just another kid. and yeah, they're both war children, sure, but they're  _ children. _ they goof off, and plan so many pranks that they could prank people for an entire year. they talk about their friends to each other, and roxas introduces ven to his significant others. when asked if he himself has any, ven blushes and says he didn't really get the chance before everything went to shit, but he did see this person through sora's heart, who seems around his age, so he'll talk to them later. roxas wishes him great luck, and then ven is off, involved in a race.

terra and aqua are a brief encounter, until they're not. they talk about everything and then some, and it's quite nice. they say they'll be his godparents, that lea and isa already said so. aqua also says she'll train him in command styles when he asks for help. he says he wants to learn how to do cartwheels too, so aqua offers to teach him and anyone else who wants to learn gymnastics. it's nice to be cared for by multiple adults.

the day is good, the food is good, the company is good, and roxas couldn't ask for more.

namine and riku wheel out a piano from the shed, and namine begins to play as everyone gets into full swing. her voice is sweet, and xion and ven only make it better. they all know this song, saying it's in their hearts, and roxas is just as surprised as everyone else when olette joins in, but she quickly takes the lead, with everyone making space for her voice.

kairi and sora sit together on a paopu tree, facing the setting sun. sora is saying something and-

is kairi crying?

she nods at sora, pulling her hand away as sora vanishes, and the beach is silent, aside from kairi joining in with the song. they finish, and suddenly, there's only sobbing.

namine finishes.

**Author's Note:**

> :)
> 
> hey hey hey thank you for reading!!!!! any thoughts or feelings at should be left in the comments or something ahaha.....yeah!
> 
> (did you drink water? eat ur snack? u better drink water or i will turn you into spagetti >:( i am Not joking)
> 
> thank you so much for reading if you want to talk to me or something then uh my twitter is @kairisms and also i love you! bye!


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